Baby Shads
by IshiHatake23
Summary: Written for shadowluvr13. Shadows 'birth' on the Ark. He takes his first breath, his first step, and speaks his first word, all under the care of Maria and her grandfather Dr. Gerald Robotink. No pairings.
1. Birth

**Written for **_**shadowluvr13! **_**Shadow's 'birth' and everything from his first breath to his first steps on the Ark. No pairings.**

***Disclaimer: I own nothing!**

_**Birth**_

Maria angerily made her way to the room marked 'off limits' with her favorite book under her arm. She and her grandfather had had another argument about her illness. She knew her body was weak, but it always angered her when he would point it out. She sat down with her back against the capsel that held a small black and red creature.

"How could he even say that? He makes me so angery somethimes!" She looked at the tiny hedgehog. "I wish he would belive in me as much as he belives in you."

To her surprise its little ears twitched in her direction.

"Huh? ...can...can you hear me?" She asked and sure enough his ears twitched."Hmm...I wonder if you like people to talk to you like normal babys do..."

She got settled to where she could lean against the tank and still keep an eye on him. She began to read 'The Scarlet Letter' out loud, carefully watching his reactions. He would kick or squirm occasionaly, but mainly he would just wiggle his ears. It was the cutest thing she'd ever seen.

After a while she got up and slowly moved around the room. As she read she made sure to speak loudly and clearly. His ears followed her, even when she picked up a pen and threw it, to see if he would follow the sound, but he only seemed interested in her voice.

When she finished the book, she walked out of the room, but stopped to steal another glance at the black and red hedgehog her grandfather had named 'Shadow'. His ears had flattened in what seemed like sorrow, not liking the loss of the only comforting sound to ever grace his tiny ears. She went back over to him and lay her hand of the glass.

"I'll come back tomorrow with another book okay." She cooed gently.

She could have sworn she'd seen a small smile on his muzzle.

2 months later

Dr. Robotink held up the tiny black and red furred hedgie with glee."Yes! I've done it!"

"Gradnfather!" Maria scolded angerly as she snatched Shadow away from him."You can't just take him out and leave him dripping wet! And you didn't even bother to help him breathe!"

She wrapped the infant hedgehog in a soft baby blanket and firmly patted his back. He coughed a little and expelled what ever liquid was left in his lungs. Upon being able to breathe he began to cry...rather loudly.

covered his ears."Do all babies do that?"

Maria smilled as she gently bounced him up and down in her arms."Crying is a good thing. If he's crying he's breathing."

After much coaxing and calming words Shdaow stopped crying and opened his little eyes. Both Maria and gasped as they were met by crimson irises. He blinked at the bright lights and hid his face in Marias neck. She nuzzled him and kissed his quill-covered head. The spines were so soft, probably no even sharp enough to peirce butter.

"I'll get him something to eat then put him to bed." She said as she turned from her grandfather.

She went into the kitchen and found the formula they'd bought for him. She managed to make his bottle with out setting him down. She went into the nursery she'd forced her grandfather to arrange and sat down in the rocking chair. His tan lips wrapped around the bottle and he began to nurse. Maria smiled as a sort of maternal love engulfed her heart. To try and get him to sleep she started to sing a song one of her grandfathers female collegues had taught her. Konoyo no Uta, she called it...

"Sing a song unto the world

Rising high the clouds unfurl

Fan flames into the past

Here, now our lives will last

We'll never know the times of pain

Fall down, fall down, falls the rain

My life won't be plain"

Shadows eyes closed as he fell into a calm sleep. Maria put him in the cradle and tucked the blanket around him. She fussed over her little hedgie for a few more minutes and walked to her room next door. She turned on the baby monitor that lay on her nightstand and fell asleep to the sound of Shadows quiet breathing.

**Everybody stay quiet or you'll wake the baby! R&R please, but do it quietly!**


	2. First Word and Step

**Second chapter to No Longer Lonely. Shadows first word! Somebody get the baby book!**

***Disclaimer:Still own nothing...**

_**First Word and Step**_

"Doctor...Gerald...anything?" had been trying to get Shadow to talk for the past three weeks, but could not get him to even try!

Shadow merely looked up with a bored expression and made a scoffing sound.

"Come on, Shadow! I've got a bet standing with Maria you'll say my name first." He exclaimed pointing to a picture of Maria.

Shadow smiled, flashing his baby fangs, as her looked at the photograph."Mmmm-aaaa-rrrr-"

"Oh no you don't!" Gerald quickly picked up something shiney to distract Shadow.

Shadow quickly grabbed for the keychain and promptly put it in his mouth. Nomming the plastic character at the end. Gerald sighed in defeat as the blue eyed blond walked in the room, a knowing expression on her face. She put her hands on her hips and smoothed the wrinkles out of her baby blue dress.

"He was about to say my name and you stopped him. _That_ is cheating." She said giving him a kiss on the cheek and scooped Shadow up.

"You never said we couldn't stop him from saying something."

"Yeah, shame on me. I have to give him a bath and put him down for a nap."

She turned on her heel and took him into the bathroom. She sat him in a little seat like tub about the size of a large mixing bowl. She filled it with warm water and poured a little on his head. He didn't like it very much and squirmed uncomfortably.

He shook his head. "Mar-mar-"

Maria smiled as he tried to say her name. She quickly washed him off, getting wet herself in the process, and wrapped him in a fluffy towel. He clung to her as he glared at the acursed tub. He would never understand why she felt the need to make him take the stupid thing called a 'bath'.

She went into her room and sat him down on her bed."Shadow, can you say 'Maria'?"

"...Mar...Mar..." Shadow looked up at her with his attempt at frustration.

The baby hedgehog couldn't fathom why the word wouldn't form. He crossed his arms and made a quiet 'humph' noise. Maria laughed as he made an 'angery' face that came out more like a pout. She sighed as he made a squeeky sounding yawn and resumed his mad expression. The blond smoothed back his quills and patted his back.

"It's okay you'll get it." She put the little hedgie in his crib and sat in a chair in the corner to watch him.

_'Now, how am I going to get you to talk?'_ She thought to herself.

He slept soundly occasionaly reaching out to Maria in his sleep. She would always go over and stroke his cheek or rub his back, touch seemed to calm him. Shadow obviously had exciting dreams becouse he kicked...alot. They had to replace the bars on his crib on more then one occasion.

When he woke up he looked around. "Mar...Mar...?"

"I'm right here, Shadow." She said coming into the room.

Shadow held his arms out to her, begging to be picked up. He bounced with impatiants when he thought she took too long getting to his crib. She picked him up and cuddled him for a moment. He greatfully accepted the attention snuggling into her neck and hidding in the seemingly endless ocean of gold. She forced herself to pull away from the warmth of his tiny body and place him in the playpin.

After watching Shadow discover his tail and promptly try and catch it for about two hours Maria had not come up with an idea to get her little spikey bundle of joy to speak. What did he like?... What was his favorite activity?...What kind of noises did he find calming? She came up with the same basic answer all three times: Maria, playing with Maria, Maria's singing.

Then an idea came to her. "Shadow. I need to go get something, see you in a bit."

She walked out of the room and hid behind the doorframe. Shadow had never been left on his own before, mainly becouse Maria said she'd kill whoever left him unsupervised. Shadow seemed dumbfounded for a moment then crawled a few inches. His baby glare set on the door where he'd last seen Maria.

"Mar-Mar?" He got no answer. "Mar-Mar!"

He gave his famous little 'humph' and tried to get to his feet. He fell at first, but his determination to get his Maria back in that room was unweavering. He clutched to the sides of the pin to steady himself and stood up and took a wobbley first step. It took everything Maria had to keep from running to hug him and gush about his first step. The black and red stripped creature inhaled deeply and Maria covered her ears, knowing the next thing to come out of his mouth was not going to be his inside voice.

"MARIA!" Shadow yelled, stomping his little feet.

Said blond ran into the room and excitedly hugged him. "You did it, Shadow! You said your first complete word! And took your first step! I'm so proud of you! Grandfather! Get in here!"

The scientist sulked in, rubbing his ear. "I heard him. actually I think the everybody in the galaxy heard him."

"And he took his first step!" Maria kissed Shadow on his tan cheek and bounced him up and down on her hip.

"Great now he'll be even harder to catch up with, he can already crawl faster then I can walk."

Shadow giggled and then_** teleported **_onto Maria's dresser!

"Grandfather?"

"He has the power of chaos control...Oh dear God." Robotink then fainted with the thought of catching a speed demon hedgehog with chaos powers in his mind.

"Grandfather?" She nudged him with her foot as Shadow teleported into her arms. "Oh dear."

***Au Note/: It is done! Thanks again to shadowluvr13 for requesting the story. R&R and remember to be safe on the internet.(There are some real creeps out there)**


End file.
